Atmospheric conditioning apparatus for storage rooms



July 1, 1930 f c. A. MOORE 1,769,155 ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARATUS FOR STORAGE ROOMS y OriginalFled Aug. 11; 1923' 5. Sh-ee'ts-Sheet 1 A TTORNEYS.

juh/'L 1930. C. A. MOORE 1,769,155

I ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARATUS`FOR STORAGE ROOMS I Original Filed Aug. l1, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ill.

A TTORNEYS.

c. A. MOORE 1,769,155

ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARTUS FOR STORAGE ROOMS `Iuly l, 1930.

-5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Aug. ll 1925 INVENTOR. (//2af'Ze/S /Yofe -v A TTORNEYS.

July 1, 1930.

C. A. MOORE ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARATUS FOR STORAGE ROOMS 5 Sheets-Sheet Original Filed Aug. l1 1923 BY f M A TTORNEYS.

' July 1, 1930. c. A. MOORE 1,759,155

ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARATUS FOR STORAGE ROOMS Original Filed Aug. 1l, 1 925 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 l[nig ZZ INVENTOR.

Uafie Moor@ ATTORNEYS.

Patented Jrulyll, 1930 PATENT OFFICE CHARLES A. MOORE, or EDINA, MINNESOTA ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONING APPARATUSFOR STORAGE ROOMS My invention relates to improvements in atmospheric conditioning apparatus particularly, though not exclusively, -for storage rooms.

The universally growing need for storing widely varied produce under conditions that are sanitary and that provide the requisite temperatures and percentages of humidity under varying outer atmospheric conditions,

lo necessitates a simple, durable, compact and inexpensive atmospheric conditioner which may be readily installed and easily'cont-rolled by the ordinary person.

An object of this invention is to supply a unitary apparatus of this kind adapted to be constructed in stock sizes for installation in storage roomsof different dimensions.

A further object is to provide a multi-purpose apparatus of the present nature adapted to provide for ventilation, ventilation accompanied with humidification or dehumidiiicaion, ventilated heating accompanied with umidiiication or dehumidification and veng tilat-ed, dehumidified refrigeration.

view,which will appear in the following des'cription, the invention resides in the novel combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed.

Inthe drawings, Fig. '1 is a side elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention, the same being shown installed in a room and connected with. various fittings; Fig. 2 is a front view of the apparatus, portions thereof being broken away to disclose interior portions; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken as on the line 4-4 of F ig. 3; Fig. 5 is a detail view similar to Fig. 4, the same being taken as on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is an elevational view illustrating an alternate form of my improved apparatus; Fig. 7 is a plan view of the same; Fig.

8 is a. vertical central sectional view taken as on the line 8 8 of Fig. 6\and Fig. 9 is a horizontal sectional view taken as on the line 9-,9

of Fig. 8.. I

Referring vto the drawings, Fig. 1 illustrates a building equipped with my appa- With the foregoing and other objects inA Application filed August l1l, 1923, serial 1T. 656,815. Renewed July 27, 192s..

ratus and associated fittings for conditioning the atmosphere in a room A. The lapparatus includes anv upright casing B supplied with a cap 10 and with a doorway 11 at the lower end thereof, said doorway being adapted to V be closed by means of doors 12 hinged on said casing. A pipe 13 reaching upward from vthe cap 10 and through the roof of the building brings the interior of the casing B into communication with the outer atmosphere,

said pipe being fitted with aV branch pipe 13a opening nearl the ceiling 14 of the room and supplied with a damper 15. A jacket a arranged inside of the casing B, is provided to receive a temperature affecting fluid. A

' pipe 16 opening into the bottom of the jacket a conducts the desired fluid thereto and the pipe 17 at the top of said -jacket conveys said fluid therefrom. A brine cooling device (l,V illustrated in Fig. 1, circulates brine tli'rough the casing B, a valved feed pipe 18 being connected with the pipe 16 and a valved return pipe 19 joined with the pipe 17. Cold water, hot water or steam from a valved feed pipe 20 may be circulated through the casing B, a valved pipe 21 being supplied to return the fluids. To'prevent injury to the jacket B, under excessive pressures, an overflow pipe 22 fitted with a safety relief valve 23 is provided. This loverflow pipe 22l and the two return pipes 19 and 21 are all connected with the branch pipe 17 issuing fromtsaid jacket a'. An upright conduit 24 is arranged axially of the casing B. A pipe 25, leading from the upper end of said conduit extends through the cap 10 andterminates at a point near the ceiling of the room A, said pipe being fitted with a damper 26. Leading horizontally'from the lower end of the onduti 24 is a pipe 27, which reaches throu h the side of the casing B and the wall 28 of the-room into the outer atmosphere, said pipe being tted with a damper 29 operable from within the room. A pipe 30 opposed to said pipe 27 communicates with the` conduit 24 and 95 reaches through the front ofthe casing B.

This pipe 30, normally closed by means of a l removable cover'31, permits' of access to the conduit 24 from'inslde the room. A drum32, l 4- I encircling the conduit 24, is closed at its upper end by a cover plate 32 and opens at its lower end near the bottom of the casing B, the inner and outer walls of said drum being respectively spaced apart from the outer wall of the conduit 24 and the inner wall of the casing B. Opposed upright partitions or baiiies 3,3 between the conduit 24 and drum'32 v stop short of the plate 32 at their upper ends and meet at their lower endswith the, ends of a horizontal, segmental partition 34 between said conduit and drum. Supported at the lower end of the conduit4 24 is a vapor generating tank 35 and beneath said tank are burners 36 for `heating both conduit and tank. These burners rest above the lower end of the drum 32, access thereto being had` through the doorway 12 in theca'si'ng B and y' v through an' adjacent openingl 37 cut in the side of Said drum. ,Crown and -side plates 38 and 39 'span the spacesbetw'een the "upper and side. margins vof the opening 37 in the drum 32 and' the corresponding: margins of I' z the doorway1`1in the casing B. Heatedair andI gases rising Ifrom the vburners-.36.pass

through the up-draft passageway 32a' Within the drum 32, thence downward through the communicating down-draft passageway 32b therein. Ports 32 inthe wall of the drum 32,

slightly above the segmental partition 34, provide for the escape of. heated air and gases from said down-draft passageway 32b to the `'interior of the casing B. Within the'con-'Y duit 24 and leading upward from the tank 35 is a pipe l40 (Fig.I 3), the same being supd plied at the top thereof with an expansion tube 41 openl at -its upper end and with an' overflow branch pipe 42-reaching outward through the appliance. This branch `pipe 42v f empties into. the top of an elevatedwater supply tank 43 (Fig. 1), a feed pipe 44 from said supply tank being led downward, thence through the -casing B and drum 32 tothe Vapor generating tank 35. Water fromav` main 45 opening into thesupplygtank 43 is admitted'to' said tank under control of a float actuated valve 46. This valve' insures a full generating tank at all times and maintains a i constant level in the pipe 40 in near proximity to the elevation of the overiow branch pipe 42.

Under varying` pressures and temperatures, the apparatus up a Ventilating circulation in the room without using the burners 36 or a temperature affecting medium in the'pjacket a. Under some conditions, freshl air enters the pipe 27, passesupward through 4 the -conduit 24 and out ofthe pipe 25 into the ro'om near the ceiling, while air from the Hoor of the room enters the casing B through the doorway 11 and passes into the outer atmosphere through the casing B. Under other conditions this movement of ,air may be reversed, the ingress of fresh air being downward through the casing B to the floor of the room and the legress of. air 4downward from the ceiling of the room through the conduit 24'. With varying temperatures within and without the room, the attendant differing temperatures in the conduit 24 and casing B result in a stimulated egress of air from the room. :[nthis connection, assume that warm. air 1s r1s1ng into the room through the conduit 24, it willbe understood that the colder air in the casing B will absorb heat from the conduit 24 and thus-warmed will rise through the casing and out of the pipe 13.I With cold air descending into the room through the casing B, the warmer air in the conduit-24 Ventilated -heating is broughtabout by introducing hot water or-steam to the jacket a, as through the feed andl return pipes-20, 21, Fig. 1. `Under such :circumstances the, air in the room about the'casing'B is .heated by radiation from the jacketc. The column of air within the casing B and-about the conduit 24v is heated, itsv egress from' thev room being f vwill be cooled and thus effected will pass into I `the outer atmosphere.`

stimulated thereby.` 'The 'freshening air supthe `-bottom'of the tank35, which forms the bottom ofthe conduit 24 and that heated air and gases from said burners travel through the nii-'draft `,and down-draft passageways 322.32" of the drum 32-and about said conduit before being admitted to theegresspassageway inthe casing Saidburners 36 may be adjusted in the usual manner to supplyl humidity in varying percentages. With theability to thus heat at-varying temperatures and Sto charge the atmosphere in the room with humidity in desired percentages, manyI of the storage problems 'are met. For example, bananas and other fruits may be maturedas required in the presence of heated humidificd freshening air. Even without arm air around said conduit, its ingress b e-v the jacket a as a heating device, the heat from the burners 36 stimulates circulation and heats the freshening air to a. limited degree 'in addition to generating vapor. With the use of said burners alone, it, therefore, will be understood that vegetables and other perishable products in a room can be protected against mildly cold weather and saved from deterioration and shrinkage as well.

Should the air'in a room become too highon the casing B correspondingly adjusted,

whereupon the upper stratum of air, which contains the highest percentage of humidity, will be skimmed fromthe room by said branch pipe 13a and led therethrough to the egress pipe 13. This dehumidifying process may also be carried out under ventilatedl refrigeration, which now will be described.

In refrigerating, chilled water or brine is introduced to the jacket a, as through the feed and return pipes 18, 19 or 20, 21. The* freshening air within the casing B and about the conduit 24 settles upon being cooled and Hows into the room through the doorway 11 in said casing. Being cooled owing to the near proximity ofthe refrigerant, the egress of air from the room through thev conduit 24 is stimulated.v Condensation of moisture on the inner wall of the acket a, during refrigeration, and the disposition of drip from said wall through a floor drain 47 results in dehumidifying the reshening air. This resultl is advantageous since it is desirous to have a low percentage of humidity in a refrigerating atmosphere. Aiding, if desired, in the dehumidifying process, the pipe 13a operates to skim the air most heavily laden with moisture from the stratum near the ceiling of the room.

Refrigeration like heating may becontrolled by regulating the temperature and circulation of the temperature effecting medium in the jacket a. This regulation coupled with the regulation of the dampers 15,'

26 and 29 and of the doors 12 brings about any desired atmospheric condition within a storage room under varying Climatic conditions outside.

In the alternate form of apparatus illustrated in Figs.`69, the jacket avfor the casing B comprises a coiled pipe 48. Weight, cost and pressure withstanding qualities considered, it will be understood that a jacket of coiled pipe'as at48 is desirable over the plain drum-like jacket a (Figs. 2 and 3) under conditions where pressures within the jacket are great. From the above explanation, it will be understood that the apparatus will serve to ventilate a room; that it will increase or reduce the temperature of the freshening air and at the same time establish stimulated conveying circulation within the apparatus resulting in stimulated convective and diEused circulation within the room and that it will increase or reduce the percentage of humidity in a room under varying conditions to suit differing requirements.

Changes inthe specific form of lnyinvention, as herein'disclosed, may be made Withi in the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as vnew anddesire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus for use in. a room comprising an upright jacketed casing adapted to receive in the jacket thereof a heating medium, said casing communicating at the'lower end thereof with the lower portlon of the room and at its upper end with the outside atmosphere, a vertical conduit extending centrally within and spaced apart from the casing, said conduit communicating at its upper end with the upper portion of the room, and at its lower end with the` outer atmosphere, a drum around the conduit and spaced apart from said casing and said conduit, and said drum communicating at its lower end with the lower portion of the room, a vapor tank opening into the conduit, a means to heat the tank and drum, said drum having an outlet into the casing for heated air and gases from said heating means.

2. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus for use in a room comprising an upright casing communicatin at its lower end with the lower portion o the room and at its upper end with the outer atmosphere, a conduit extending axially within and spaced apart from the casing, said conduit communicating at its upper end with the room near l latter, section opening into the passageway' between said drum and casing.

3. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus for use in a room comprising an upright casing communicating at its lower end with the lower portion of the roomand at its upper end with theoutside atmosphere, a conduit extending axially Within and spaced apart from the casing, said conduit communicating at its upper'end with the room near the ceiling and at its lower end with the outer atmosphere, adrum encircling the con- Vduit and spacedv apart from the casing,I said rum communicating at its lower end through `sai-d casing with the lower portion of the room, a vapor generator opening into the conduit, means for heating said drum and generator, and baiiies interposed between the drum and conduit and dividing the interior of the drum into an up-draft section for heated air and gases from said heating means 4. An atmospheric conditioning appara-r tus for use in a room comprising an upright casing communicating at its lower end with the lower portion of the room and at its upper end with the outside atmosphere, a conduit extending axially within and spaced apart from the casing, .said conduit communicating at its upper end with the room near the ceiling and at its lower end with the outer atmosphere, a drum encircling the conduit and spaced apart from said casing, said drum communicating at its lower end through said casing with the lower portion of the room, and heating means beneath the drum, said drum having an outlet into the casing for heated air and gases from said heating means.

5. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus for use in a room comprising an upright casing, a jacket incorporated in said casing adapted to receive a heating medium, said cas'- ing being open nearl the bottom thereof into the room near the floor, a pipe leading upward from the top of said casing and open to the outside atmosphere, a vertical conduit extending centrally of and spaced apart from the casing, a pipe leading upwardly from the conduit through the top of the casing and ter' minating near the ceiling of the room, a pipe leading horizontally into the room from the outer atmosphere` and connecting with the conduit at the lower end thereof, a drum enasing the conduit and spaced apart from said casing, said drum communicating at its lower end with the lower portion of the room through said casing, a vapor tank opening into the conduit, means to heat the tank and drum, and baflie plates interposed .between the drumxI and conduit and dividing the former into an up-draft section for heated air and gases from the said heating means and a commun-icating down-draft section, said drum having ports -at the lower portion of said down-draft section opening into the passageway between said drum and casing.

6. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus foruse in a room comprising an upright casing communicating at its lower Vend with the lower portion of the room and at its upper end with the outside atmosphere, means for heating the casing, a conduit extending axially within and spaced apart from the casing, said conduit-communicating at its upper end with the room near the ceiling and at its lower end with the outer atmosphere, a vapor generator opening into said conduit, and means independent of said first heating means for heating the conduit and also the generator.

7. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus/for use in a room comprising an upright axially within and spaced apartlfrom the cas tus for use in a room comprisin Y d 4 y l l e ing downwardly into the lower po'rti'onof'thecasing.cmmuaieatigatlagffewer end with l the lower portion.oftherffmifnl and atits upv per vend with the outside `atmospliere,means for heating the casing, va 'conduitextending e t ".70 ing, said conduit commumcating at its-'upper end with the room near the ceiling and atrits. 'l lower end with the outer atmosphere,l and e means vfor heating 'the cofnduitfff1 l ii. An atmospheric`v ,conditigning appara-:

room from outside, Asaid ducthavin auope'n-.a 'i ving nearathe ceilln" fand a secony opening -l f near the-Hoor, a ]ac et for iat'emperaturejza `ecting'rnedil'nn associatedlsadductjbe" f tween said openings, a second ductleading i.

downward fromA l lthe upper lportion :of the room to outside,and adjustable yclosures for they openings in said firstduct. f j 8'5" 9. lAn atmospheric conditioning appara-e' ,1 tus for use in a room comprising alduct communicating with the outer at'Iz'ixosplrere above j the room,said duct having an openingfnea'ri; i the ceiling and another openingnear-tli'e Hoor,- a second duct communicating-with the room near the ceiling and with the `outer atmos# phere near vthe level 'of theffioor, said ducts being arranged one within'the other to effect in one a stimulated circulationby reason of 9.5

` differences in temperature .in the other, andy -adjustable closuresfor said openings in the first duct, said closures providing for vthe. regulated ingress ya-ndegress ofair to and from said first duct at the ceiling and fioor of the room. 1' l .y 10. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus Afor use in a room comprising a duct lead- Y ing downwardly. into and communicating l with the lower portion of the room from outside, a second duct communicating withl and leading downward from the upper portion of the room to outside, a portion of one duct being encased withintheother and tem-l perature affecting means associated with one of said ducts, said means being convertible for heating and refrigeratingfpurposes.

11.` An apparatus of the class described for use in a room constituting room Ventilating passageways, each adapted both for ingress and egress of air, one passageway including an upright casing communicating at its upper end with the outer atmosphere and at its lower end with rthe room near the iioor, the other passageway includin a 'conduitv within said casing communicating at its'upper end with the room near' the ceiling and-v at its lower end with the outer atmosphere, and a jacket for a temperature aecting medium associated with said casing.

, 12. A conditioning apparatus Vfor use in a room comprising a ductleading downwardly into the lower portion of the room from outside, a second duct leading downward from I the' upper portion of the room to outside, 'a 13 duct lead; i

portion of one duct being encased within the other, and independent temperature aEecting means associated with each duct. y

13. A conditioning apparatus for use in a room comprising a duct leading downwardly into and communicating with the lower portion of the room from outside, a second duct communicating with' and leading downward from the upper portion of the room to ouf side, a portion of one duct yheing encased within the other and temperature reducing means associated with one of said ducts.

14. An atmospheric conditioning apparatus for use in a room comprising a duct leading downwardly into and communicating with the lower portion of the room from outside, a second duct communicating with and leading downward from the upper portion of the room to the outside, a portion of one duct being encased within the other and a jacket for a temperature affecting medium associated with one of said ducts. y 15. An apparatus for use in a room, comprising a duct leading downwardly into and communicating with the lower portion of the -room from the outside, said duct being inv communication at its upper portion with the upper portion of the room, and a duct for heated air and gases communicating with 3o said first duct between the levels of communication thereof with the upper and lower portions of the room. l

In testimony whereof, I have Asigned my name to this specification.

. CHARLES A. MOORE. 

